Can i use a humidifier in my tortoise table?

Lewis516

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Hi there, i currently have my hermann tort in an indoor tortoise table, with it being open unlike a vivarium its hard to keep the general humidity anywhere near the recommended ammount. I have an insulated hide with sphagnum moss in holding anywhere from 70% up to 90% humidity but the rest of the enclosure drops to 30% up to 50% at most. I have tried quite a few things to Would a reptile humidifier be able to solve this problem no matter what kind of enclosure i had?
 

Yvonne G

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Usually when we encourage lots of humidity for baby tortoises, we're talking about leopards, sulcatas, stars, etc. The Mediteranean group of tortoises gets by ok with a bit less humidity. You can achieve the humidity your Hermanns tortoise needs by wetting the substrate, then continuing to add water as it dries out, and a few plants.
 

Tom

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Hi there, i currently have my hermann tort in an indoor tortoise table, with it being open unlike a vivarium its hard to keep the general humidity anywhere near the recommended ammount. I have an insulated hide with sphagnum moss in holding anywhere from 70% up to 90% humidity but the rest of the enclosure drops to 30% up to 50% at most. I have tried quite a few things to Would a reptile humidifier be able to solve this problem no matter what kind of enclosure i had?
No humidifiers for tortoises. To increase humidity you'll need to reduce ventilation. Cover the top as much as you can in whatever way is practical for your situation. Damp substrate, a large shallow water dish, a humid hide box, and the plants that Yvonne suggested will all help. I'd remove the moss. It doesn't do anything that damp substrate doesn't do, and it is an impaction hazard when they eat it, which almost all of them do.

Here is the current and correct care info:
 

Lewis516

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Usually when we encourage lots of humidity for baby tortoises, we're talking about leopards, sulcatas, stars, etc. The Mediteranean group of tortoises gets by ok with a bit less humidity. You can achieve the humidity your Hermanns tortoise needs by wetting the substrate, then continuing to add water as it dries out, and a few plants.

Yea i soak the substrate every day twice but it dries back out within an hour due to the ammount of airflow the enclosure gets. Im mostly trying to prevent pyramiding really or at least avoid it ive heard among a lot of other factors humidity is a big one, i had a few live plants in there before but they made minimal difference. Just trying to do my best for the tort really any and all advice on preventing pyramiding would be much appreciated.
 

Lewis516

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No humidifiers for tortoises. To increase humidity you'll need to reduce ventilation. Cover the top as much as you can in whatever way is practical for your situation. Damp substrate, a large shallow water dish, a humid hide box, and the plants that Yvonne suggested will all help. I'd remove the moss. It doesn't do anything that damp substrate doesn't do, and it is an impaction hazard when they eat it, which almost all of them do.

Here is the current and correct care info:
Hi Tom i just finished reading your "The Best Way To Raise Any Temperate Species Of Tortoise" thread. Im glad you shared it it shed a lot of light on plenty of things i wasnt sure about. Im currently not in an amazing position i have my 2 year old tort in my room currently we've only recently moved and until the garage conversion gets done the enclosure is set up in my room. Im fine with the humidity and temperatures but once i have the garage done i do want to have our greenhouse refurbished to grow the food for him and maybe move him out there aswell as a fully outdoor run. I currently have to buy mixed leaf greens from the shops, i sprinkle arcadia calcium pro powder on his food once every other day and i am looking for a good vitamin and mineral powder which is available in the uk is there any you could recommend me? Ideally i want to be growing the best and correct food for him that i can but right now i simply cant. I just wanted to check that the supplements i am using are the best you could recommend. Thanks
 

Sarah2020

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Hi they do not need an abundance of calcium and supplements. With good light, heat, substrate, humidity , diet , water and soaks this all helps health and welfare.
 

Lewis516

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Hi they do not need an abundance of calcium and supplements. With good light, heat, substrate, humidity , diet , water and soaks this all helps health and welfare.
I try to keep ontop of everything but i dont have access to a good diet for the tort at the moment i normally feed 4 days store brought (mixed leaf greens) 1 day dandelion leafs and grass the other 2 days i have high fibre pellets i spray with a bit of water to soften them. The plan is to start growing the weeds and flowers myself but 1. I dont right now have anywhere to grow them and 2. Im not really sure on the best diet for a hermann tortoise (as in what weeds and flowers to feed, how often amd when) hence the supplements. I didnt think store brought foods had much if any calcium/vitamin and mineral benifits to them so im just for the time being looking for the best supplements for my tort. How often should i give calcium and V/M supplements and in what kind of quantities?
 

KarenSoCal

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Here's a post by Tom on how he gives supplements to his tortoises.

Supplements:
I recommend you keep cuttle bone available all the time. Some never use it and some munch on it regularly. Some of mine will go months without touching it, and then suddenly eat the whole thing in a day or two. Sulcatas and leopards grow a lot. This requires a tremendous amount of calcium assimilation over time. A great diet is paramount, but it is still a good idea to give them some extra calcium regularly. I use a tiny pinch of RepCal or ZooMed plain old calcium carbonate twice a week. Much discussion has been given to whether or not they need D3 in their calcium supplement. Personally, I don't think it matters. Every tortoise should be getting adequate UV exposure one way or another, so they should be able to make their own D3. I also like to use a mineral supplement. "MinerAll" is my current brand of choice. It seems to help those tortoises that like to swallow pebbles and rocks. It is speculated that some tortoise eat rocks or substrate due to a mineral deficiency or imbalance. Whatever the reason, "MinerAll" seems to stop it or prevent it. Finally, I like to use a reptile vitamin supplement once a week, to round out any hidden deficiencies that may be in my diet over the course of a year.

Any calcium supplement will work. Here are some other products.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B000UJSUO4/?tag=

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00167S5GC/?tag=

I haven't been able to find Miner-All to order in the UK, but any mineral supplement for reptiles should be fine.

A small pinch of calcium should be given 2x/week.
A small pinch of vitamin and mineral supplements should be given weekly.
 
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